Tucker County High School Seniors celebrate graduation on Friday as 77 seniors received their diplomas.
PARSONS – Family, friends, neighbors, instructors, administration, BOE members and well-wishers gathered Friday evening to help celebrate Tucker County High School’s 39th Graduation for the 2017 Senior Class. The day had been rainy, but as the 2017 Tucker County Senior Class lined up to cross the field, the sky cleared and God blessed the 2017 Tucker County High School Graduation with a beautiful evening.
The ceremony started with Zoie Witt performing ‘The National Anthem’ and Brody Strawderman singing ‘The Sound of Silence’ accompanied by Eric Emch.
TCHS Principal Jay Hamric said the Class of 2017 is amazing.
“They are full of personality and have been an easy class to love,” Hamric said. “They have made major accomplishments in the classroom, as well as on the football field, baseball field and track. They are just an all-around amazing group. They are well-rounded and have excelled in theater and art and many other areas.”
Hamric said he is very proud of the group and said he knows they are going to do amazing things.
Student Council President Karsyn White reminded her fellow students it is never too late to be who they want to be.
“There is no time limit. You can stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same. There are no rules to this. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you live a life you are proud of and if you find at some point you are not, I hope you have the strength to start over again,” Karsyn said.
Graduating Tucker County High School Seniors take time to thank principal Jay Hamric for his hard work. Hamric has been principal at the school for seven years and had accepted a position in Colorado.
Salutatorian Elizabeth Nichols thanked the teachers and staff at Tucker County High School.
“You have supported me,” Elizabeth said. “Mr. Hamric, I am so thankful you were our principal for the last four years. You are the perfect example that you don’t have to be 18-years-old and graduating high school to be experiencing a new chapter in life.”
Elizabeth also gave a shout out to vice principal Stephen Cosner for his first year of many upcoming years at TCHS.
Following Elizabeth’s address, she passed the baton to Nathaniel Rader.
Valedictorian Melanie Adams thanked those gathered at graduation for supporting the Class of 2017 now and in their future endeavors. She compared the students to Rubik’s Cubes.
“At the beginning of our Freshman year, we started out as a new unchanged cube,” Melanie said. “As the days of our Freshman year moved into our Sophomore year, we made mistakes. We are all just a mess of colors jumbled together on the Rubik’s Cube of life, we have managed to accomplish this big step.”
“Today is not a small thing. It is a milestone we have been working toward. Today is the day the world officially accepts us as adults,” Melanie said. “We are high school graduates.”
Tim Turner, Tucker County BOE President, said members of the Class of 2017 have excelled academically.
“Last night at the Awards Ceremony, we were able to hand out a lot of awards,” Turner said. “Lots of colleges came and recognized our students and the great preparation by their teachers. It is paying off for them and that is the whole goal. The students were honored last night and we honor them again tonight. It’s a great time for Tucker County.”
Tucker County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Eddie Campbell said graduation is really a culmination of an academic career for the students.
“It’s a really special night when we get to watch these kids finish their high school career,” Campbell said. “It’s always a proud moment for us as a school system because we know these kids worked hard and the staff has worked hard to get the students where they are today.”
Campbell said he feels good about the graduates.
“They have a really bright future ahead of them and we are really proud of the Tucker County High School Class of 2017,” Campbell said.
Members of the 2017 Tucker County High School Senior Class are Valedictorian Melanie Diane Adams, Salutatorian Elizabeth Rebecca Nichols, Justin Lane Fike, Abigail Marcine Holm, Quinnlan Scott Buckley, Kenzie Paige Kyle, Leah Jerilyn Underwood, Ethan Gregory Crosten, Lindsey Brooke Poling and Karsyn Paige White.
Cassandra Lynn Allen, Haley Allender, Brian Blake Arnold, Hope M. Ball, Katlynn Elaine Bates, Miranda Lee Bohon, Abrielle Kathleen Bowley, Joshua Issac Burns, Robert Issac Burton, William Robert Callaway, Hunter Elisa Canfield, Garrett Nathaniel Carrico, Brent Conrad, Brendon H. Corbitt and Jakob Cordell Cousin.
Aspen Marie Crossland, Camryn Alexis Cummings, Haley Dawn Cussins, Sheyenne Augustina Delawder, Patrick William Dellinger, Alexander Duncan Dyer, Ashleigh L. Evers, Carley Brooke Eye, Joshua Allen Freeman, Kordell Jordan Fulton, Heather P. Gephart, Kendall Alan Gooden, Jacob Paul Gwynn, Jameson Roy Hardy and Michelle Rose Harsh.
Ryan Matthew Hart, Emily Jo Heckler, Joey Howell, Jared Nicholas Johnson, Lindsay Johnson, Dayton Earl Evan Jones, Edward Kachmarek, Autumn A. Kesner, Joshua Clifford Kincaid, Dillon Blake Knotts and Michelle A. Knotts.
Slayter Layne Liller, Branden Michael Mcgee, Gary Richard Meloy, Noah Blake Nelson, Kristen N. Nestor, Anthony P. Parsons, Austin Chase Parsons, Jonathan Zachary Paugh, Logan H. Pennington, Logan Keandre Pitzer, Alicia Cheyenne Pritt and Evan W. Rhoades.
Sophia Grace Ricottilli, Hope Roy, Evan Todd Shahan, Kiley Simmons, Issac Hunter Snyder, Ty Bryce Stanley, Brett Hunter Strawderman, Brody Randal Strawderman, Cheyenne Noel Summerfield, Dillon H. Swartz, Jenna R. Walker, Amanda Brooke Waybright, Abigail Layne Zais and Isabella Zais.
